Latest market data

Stock search

Like many small-business owners, I'm a workaholic. My girlfriend
chides me for my tendency to do "just one more thing" in the
office at the end of almost every day. And it used to be
impossible for me to justify a vacation. It wasn't just the time
away from work that worried me; it was the cost--every dollar I
spent on travel represented more work I'd have to hustle up to
pay for it.

Turns out I had it all wrong. Research has shown that people are
most satisfied when they spend on experiences instead of things,
and spending on vacation is one of the best ways to buy this kind
of happiness--and keep your sanity.

Why else would a company like Clif Bar give its employees an
eight-week paid sabbatical after every seven years on the job?
For starters, it's a fantastic recruiting and retention tool. And
it allows employees to decompress, then return to work in a clear
mental state, one that is conducive to coming up with new ideas
to make the company better.

Why would you or I think we're immune to these vacation benefits
simply because we own businesses? News flash: What's good for
employees' productivity is good for us, too. In the last couple
of years, I've made vacations a priority, and guess what--my
business doesn't collapse because I take off for a week.

Vacations don't
have to be expensive--just approach them like you would any
business or personal expense in which you seek to maximize value.
In his book How to Travel the World on $50 a Day: Travel
Cheaper, Longer, Smarter, Matt Kepnes argues that with
creativity and careful planning, you can get out there for much
less than you'd expect. "If you travel like you live at home,
travel suddenly becomes a lot more affordable," Kepnes says.

To make the most of your money, focus on the "big three" vacation
expenses:

Lodging. Kepnes recommends using Airbnb.com to find family-size
accommodations for less than you'd pay for a hotel. If you
must stay at a hotel, use Priceline.com or Hotwire.com to find the best
prices--but do a search for "winning hotel bids" before you
make an offer, so you know you're not bidding too much.

Transportation. A round-trip flight to visit
my girlfriend's family in Sacramento, Calif., usually costs
about $280 per person, but I use Airfarewatchdog.com to alert me to
fares as low as $108. When I must travel on a specific
date, I use Kayak.com to find the best prices.

Food and entertainment. If you're traveling in
the U.S. or Canada, order a copy of the Entertainment coupon
book for your destination city at Entertainment.com. It's packed with
coupons from local restaurants, theaters, cultural
attractions, amusement parks and even hotels.